Chapter 6! Sorry for the long wait (again). Thanks to all of those who have reviewed! There are so many of you guys… thank you thank you thank you!
Xx-Silent-Ninja-xX: I can assure you, even though Jay is at a very low point right now, he will be happy eventually! Thanks for the review!
PracticallyZane: I'm so glad you like this! Thanks for the review, and welcome to The Wrong Team!
Quick warning: Some descriptions of blood and injuries.
Jay POV
It was three days since my encounter with Dolion. I think. It's been pretty uneventful. For the first couple of hours, I fought against the chains. Then, I yelled at him, but I don't think he heard me. And, all of the time after that, I did nothing. Absolutely nothing. What could I do? I was chained to a wall in a cellar.
Once every day, Decomposition would give me a bottle of water and watch me open it, his evil grin mirroring Dolion's. He would tell how the team was so much better without me, that they were stronger, and that Nya had actually died, that my lightning had been too strong. I doubted the last bit, Nya was doing just fine afterwards, she was likely doing fine now. I tried not to think about her too much, I was probably never going to see her again.
Now, as I sat in my cold cell, hands and ankles chained to the wall, I shivered, not just because of the temperature. I was an observant person, I had noticed the signs. I had not been fed for three days. My water rations were becoming less and less each day. They were planning on killing me.
Let Dolion do it, Jay, my thoughts screamed, Then, he won't be able to use you, or your element. It's not like anyone would miss you. No one will like who you've become. Not even yourself."
"Stop it!" I yelled, trying to get the voice to stop. My own voice, though, was scratched, parched from the lack of water, and I sighed. I was definitely gonna die, even if I didn't accept it. When I was a kid, I hated drinking water, or eating vegetables. Now, I would give anything for them.
"Lightning?" A tentative voice asked, drawing me out of my thoughts. I realized that I had been so far in la la land that I didn't hear the cell latch open. I looked up, and saw Crystal. Her white hair was done up in a messy bun, her face flushed. She held two small brown bags.
"Can I sit?" She asked, question in her voice. I nodded, confused. Did she just show….emotion?
She sat, and handed me a bag. I opened it, and gasped. In it, lay a perfectly good apple, and a full bottle of water. I looked at her, and she nodded. I dumped the contents onto the ground, so I could reach easier, and began eating the apple, sighing with relief. It was so juicy, it tasted like candy, reminding me of a time before Dolion, where I went to the carnival with my parents. I had had at least 3 caramel apples that day.
Suddenly, I remembered that Crystal was sitting beside me, and I drew my attention to her. She nibbled her lip nervously, her hands shifting from her lap to the floor and back again.
"Why are you doing this? You're helping me, you're showing emotion. Sensei Dolion's going to kill you!" I said, wanting to get some answers. She smiled sadly, and I didn't see the hardened warrior I was used to, I saw a teenager. A teenager scared to be herself.
I realized that she must've been like me, wanting to be free, wanting to have emotion, wanting to be herself. But she knew she couldn't, or else she would get in trouble. So, why now? Why defy Dolion?
"I wanted to help you." She said simply, pulling out her own apple from her own bag. She chomped on it thoughtfully, inspecting the surface.
"I never really wanted to be a Ninja." She said, and I sat a little straighter. Was she opening up? " I've always wanted to be on a stage, performing in front of an audience. I didn't know what to do, but I tried everything. I acted in a couple of plays, I took vocal lessons, I even went to Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts for a little while."
"Dancing?" I asked, remembering hearing about that school. She nodded, and continued.
"I had finally found what I loved: Dancing. I preferred Ballet or Tap, but really anything was good with me. I was about to do my first solo performance, when Dolion came up to me and my brother. Light, being the guy he is, said yes for both of us, I didn't have a say."
They grew silent, I digested her words. She was a dancer. Not a fighter. I figured that it was about time he opened up, at least a bit.
"I have no siblings. I lived with my parents at a junkyard, always wanting to make a difference. I loved tinkering, inventing, basically anything that involved taking junk and making it beautiful. I believed that one day I would build something that would change Ninjago for the better. When Dolion said I could make a difference by being a Ninja, I couldn't resist. It seemed so much easier than trying to gain a foothold in the world of engineering. I regret my decision now."
Her smile was one of joy, now, and she responded."I'm Clarissa."
"Jay. Jay Walker."
She laughed. Crystal-er- Clarissa looked at me right in my eyes, and leaned in closer to me. I got nervous. Was she...was she going to kiss me? That couldn't be bad...could it?
Instead, she whispered in my ear, her warm breath tickling me. " I'm sick and tired of Dolion. I've been planning an escape for a while, and you're coming with me. This morning, early, while everyone is asleep. Got that?"
I nodded, concern creased on my brows. Did she really think that this would work? What if this was just a trick, making me trust her, and then I would get punished. It sounded like something right out of a pirate movie for sure, but it was likely. Did I trust her? Did I trust her enough to escape with her?
Suddenly, what Nya had asked me not that long ago came back to me. I just also wanted to let you know that you're not alone. You know that, right? I was not alone. I had trusted Clarissa many times before, I could do it again. I smiled.
"Got it. Be careful."
"Cool. And, in the meantime, get some sleep. Where we're going a bit far." She finished, quickly giving me a quick kiss on my cheek. I gasped, and she laughed, a laugh that was bubbly and young. Clarissa retrieved the bags, left the water for me, and headed up the cellar ladder.
I took a deep breath. It was going to be okay. Hopefully.
Nya POV (just like I promised!)
10 hours later…
I woke up, groaning. The sun was right in my eyes, as always. I really hated my room, always getting hit by the sun. I glanced at the clock. It was 8 am already! With this new information, I jumped out of bed, put on my ninja gi, and burst into the training yard. Surprisingly, no one was there.
"Hey, Nya! We're in the kitchen!" Kai called, and I wondered how he knew where I was. Then I realized that the kitchen window was right behind the training yard...boy, I felt so distracted lately. Not because of my close call with death, but with the reasoning, and consequences, around it. There was just so much to understand….
I entered the kitchen and was welcomed by the delicious smell of Zane's pancakes. I sighed, content, and sat by my brother, who was already digging into his own stack. I stole a pancake off of his plate, gaining an angry glare, and started to eat. But, like the last three days, I found that I couldn't taste what I was eating. It was like eating mush.
Zane must've noticed my disapproval, as he placed a glass of water in front of my plate.
"Drink more water, Nya. You need it." I smiled gratefully, and took small sips.
I knew I shouldn't be like this, but everything was just so unnerving. Sensei Wu had confirmed that Dolion really wanted Decomposition and I to fight, even going as far as threatening to frame Wu's Ninja team. And, the fact that I had died during that fight only confirmed that he was planning something, something that wasn't good. I would even go as far to say they had planned my death.
I remember the fight clearly. We were exchanging blows, using our weapons alone. Eventually, I got in a clear position to blast him with water. So I did. I still picture his smirk, confident and scary when he dodged the blow. With that, he ran up to me, and before I could react, his hand touched me. I expected to feel my flesh decomposing, but instead I felt white hot pain and blacked out. I woke up to see Zane above me, and then the cute face of the Master of Lightning.
Jay had saved my life. Now I wondered if he was facing consequences for his actions. Did he revive me not knowing I was supposed to die, or do they have bigger plans for me? Was I supposed to die, and then get revived?
Zane had suspected that what killed me was a blast of condensed, electrified Vengestone, stopping my heart instantly. How they made it, we're not sure. Another mystery to solve.
After talking a couple more sips, the uneasiness in my stomach, the lack of taste, and my exhaustion still lingered. "I don't think I need water, I need answers."
"And we will get them, Nya," Cole assured me, dumping a lot of syrup on his pancake. I nodded, still unsure. But, I knew I could trust my team. We would handle it. Like always.
Unexpectedly, our doorbell rang. Lloyd's eyes widened.
"The mail-man already came today."
"I'll get it." Cole said, standing up. Soon, I heard him gasp, and open the door wide.
"Zane! We need medical care here, stat!" He shouted. Wait, medical help? Who was at the door? As a united body, we all ran to the door where Cole stood, along with Jay and Crystal. Jay was supporting Crystal on the left side, and Cole ran to the other, helping the duo stand. Kai's face paled, and he turned away. I wondered why, until I saw the dark red spot on her grey suit, near her shoulder.
"She-she was hit by a knife. Shoulder." Jay panted, struggling to stand.
Crystal's face was pale and sweaty, as she tried to push away the help. Cole and Jay held fast, but everyone in the room could tell that Jay was really weak, too. He was shaking, his face mirroring his teammate's. Lloyd wrapped the Master of Lightning around his own shoulders, and Zane took Jay's spot around the girl.
"To the medbay. Now. Lloyd, check over Jay with Wu, and alert me of anything that must be taken care of immediately." The Nindroid said, guiding Crystal to their makeshift hospital. At this point she was barely conscious.
Jay though, was awake. It killed me to see him in such a state. He was obviously hurt, and scared. So, so scared. His eyes darted around the room frantically, looking as if he expected the walls to attack him. Lloyd sat him down in a chair, and Wu kneeled in front of him, saying soft words I couldn't hear. I soon got closer to Dolion's student, after telling Kai to go get some calming tea. He nodded, eager to get out. I had forgotten how much he hated the sight of blood, and the stain on the carpet was not helping. It must've dripped off her shoulder.
"It's okay, you're safe, you're safe." Sensei Wu said, looking at Jay. I noticed that Jay held his right arm defensively, tucking it into his stomach.
"You're arm." I said, and he nodded, soon crying out in pain.
"It...It hurts!" He exclaimed, tears falling down his face. " It hurts….make it stop! Make it stop!"
"Please, give me your arm. I will not hurt it." Wu said, reaching out his own hand. Hesitantly, Jay moved his arm. Nya gasped at what she saw.
His arm was ghostly pale, his veins clearly visible, his skin cracking. His clothes were turning to dust as whatever was wrong traveled up his arm, slowly. Jay choked back another cry, as another chunk of his arm cracked, like rocky ground in a desert.
"It hurts…"
Sensei took his arm careful, inspecting it. " This is the work of Decomposition. Jay's slowly turning to dust and bone. I believe the only reason he is alive is that his element is fighting it."
"How do we stop it?" I cried, scared. I didn't want to lose my hero so soon. My crush. A possible friend.
"I have my suspicions, but I must look through my scrolls so I don't make it worse. Keep him calm and awake. Feed him and give him a drink. The stronger he is physically, the slower the process will be complete. His physical and elemental strength are the only things keeping him alive."
"But, Master Wu!" Lloyd said, grabbing his uncle's shoulder before he could leave.
"Trust me, Lloyd. If we try to treat him without knowing how to exactly do so, he will be lost to us."
I looked to Jay, who was fighting to stay awake, and grabbed his shoulder, trying to reassure him, and myself. "It's going to be okay. I promise."
And I never break my promises. I added silently.
Yay! I'm so glad I got something done! For those who are interested, I am planning on doing a Ninjago One-shot story, so if you have any ideas, please don't hesitate to request. I will give you credit! Thanks to Seleine16 and CaptainSteve1 who have already suggested, I love, and will use, both of your ideas!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned and review!
#God'sNotDead!
A quick note to CaptainSteve1: If you want to write a fanfiction about Jay being adopted by the Smith's (you talked about this in your review for Why I Left You), by all means, go for it! I would totally read it!